Bear sightings in Upper Milford, Hellertown

They follow reports from Upper Saucon, south Allentown in last few days.

July 06, 2013|By Paul Muschick, Of The Morning Call

There were two more bear sightings in the area Saturday, one around 9:15 a.m. on Skytop Drive in Upper Milford Township and the other late in the afternoon in Hellertown, where police and Pennsylvania Game Commission officers gave chase.

Candice Rosazza said her husband, Gary, went out to pick up the newspaper and saw a black bear, which he estimated to be about 500 pounds, on the front lawn of their Skytop Drive home. The bear quickly scampered into the woods before he could snap a photo.

"We've had bear up here before, but never in the daylight and not this big," Candice Rosazza said.

She said she called the neighbors to warn them.

"It was scary," she said.

She said she and her husband have lived on Skytop Drive for 27 years and are used to wildlife like deer and turkeys. She said bears have been coming around only within about the past three years, usually knocking down their bird feeder at night.

So they're cautious about doing things that could attract bears.

"We never leave anything on the grill," Rosazza said.

Her husband thought he saw a white tag on the bear's ear but couldn't be certain. They intend to report the sighting to the Game Commission.

"This one was huge," she said.

At 5:45 p.m., Hellertown sent out a release saying that borough police and Game Commission representatives pursued a black bear through the borough. The release was not more specific. Officials urged residents to be vigilant when outdoors and contact Emergency Services immediately if they see a bear.

The sightings follow three others not far away on Friday. A black bear was spotted about 10:10 p.m. on the grounds of Southern Lehigh High School in Upper Saucon Township.

Shortly after 7 p.m. Friday, Louise Buttery of the 3000 block of South Pike Avenue in Upper Saucon saw a black bear picking apart her bird feeder. It left after about 20 minutes, walking down the road.

About 10 a.m. Friday, a bear was seen in the Mountainville section of south Allentown, at Brookdale and South Fourth streets. City police and Game Commission officers found the bear, but it ran off before they had a chance to try to tranquilize it.